“He Was Crying In The Dressing Room” — Mosimane Reveals Heartbreak Over Aubaas Setback
Pitso Mosimane has revealed that Bathusi Aubaas was left in tears after being forced off early against Eritrea, with Bafana Bafana now running thin in midfield ahead of Sunday’s friendly against Egypt.
Bafana were forced to make a substitution in the 16th minute of their 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Eritrea in Cairo on Wednesday, with Brooklyn Poggenpoel replacing Aubaas after the midfielder picked up an injury early in the match.
Aubaas had been handed a starting role after Teboho Mokoena was ruled out with injury. Mokoena did not train with the team during their preparations in Egypt and missed the 5-0 victory over Eritrea.
Mosimane has now revealed the emotional impact of Aubaas’ latest setback, with the midfielder having previously missed the World Cup through injury.
“Aubaas is an unfortunate player,” he said.
“He missed the World Cup because of injury, and he was ready to come on and play, but he broke down again. He was crying in the dressing room, but we are there to support him and give him confidence.
“He’s a very good football player, and it was his chance to play again because he missed the World Cup. But he will soon be back. In the national team, we have patience for him.”
Bafana will face Egypt in a friendly on Sunday, with Poggenpoel expected to start as Mosimane continues to deal with several midfield absences.
“Teboho is out with injury, Aubaas is out with injury, so we are losing a lot of players in midfield,” Mosimane added.
“But we also gave Brooklyn a chance to play, and he played very well, like he has been playing all the time.
“We are a little bit thin against Egypt in terms of central midfielders. We had to bring Themba Zwane into midfield because I wanted to take Yaya out, as he was the only experienced one we had left.
“We don’t have Teboho, we don’t have Thalente Mbatha, we lost Jayden Adams [who sadly passed away], and we don’t have Aubaas, so it’s a little bit unfortunate for us.”
